Open daily, 449 Queen St. W., 416-703-5146. You gotta give Montrealer Dov Charney his props.
Since 1997, in an era of Juicy Couture and Nike, he has managed to turn blank, no-logoed T-shirts
into cult cool. Mr. Charney himself is the brand. He has a penchant for shock-jockdom -- models
pose topless in ads for Vice magazine, and a recent Jane magazine profile was all sex -- which
keeps his name in the news and his sales in the $80-million (U.S.) range. That the T-shirts,
undies and sweats fit well and are not made using sweat-shop labour is secondary in the American
Apparel narrative. The clothing-maker's first Toronto spot, a slick Queen Street West storefront
on the grubby block between Spadina and Bathurst, is set to open this morning (10 a.m.) and go
late, packed with colourful T-shirts starting at $18 and undies starting at $9. Expect at least
some naughty behaviour from the pulchritudinous staff.